My Relationship with Religion | Hannah Witton 

My humble opinion: 1) Religion is a way to achieve or to give ourselves a social identity 2) Belief is based upon fear of death.

As an agnostic/atheist person, hearing your take on your religion is really interesting Hannah! With all the Christmas videos that are packing out my sub feed, it's really refreshing to see a different religion's holidays represented! Thank you Hannah, much love ❤️

It’s always heartwarming for me to hear of non-judgmental and loving conversations between people of different religions. I live in the US in the “Bible Belt” and I was raised Christian but really identified as an atheist around the age of 13. I had the same thought process as you, Hannah! Now, I am 22, and am a Muslim.. back to my point, it’s so hard to find the loving conversations. ❤️

Loving vlognukkah Hannah. I don't know anything about Hanukkah or Judaism so hearing your stories and your perspective is really refreshing and informative!

Speaking as a current "Christian" and as a person raised Christian, I also have a VERY hard time with a lot of the stuff you mentioned. I have seen first hand the kind of back-handedness, nonacceptance, shaming, and all the other things that happen in a church. I've also seen, though, the kind of relationships it builds and the support networks they build. You're right, I don't understand how people who have so many different beliefs can call themselves believers of the same religion. I have a hard time justifying being part of something that tells people they are better or worse than someone else based on who they love, or what gender they identify as to myself, let alone to a bunch of people on the internet. I believe that there is a God and that he sent his son to forgive all of our sins, but i take everything with a grain of salt because i recognize that "religion" has strayed from what i believe to be it's first intended purpose (fellowship, worship, and support for fellow believers).

Love this video and love the evolution of your relationship with/opinion of religion. I was raised Catholic but I don't identify with one anymore, mostly because I have the same problems with organized religion you do. However my opinion on why organized religion have led to such horrid things all the way throughout history and up until now has changed. My current opinion is that the problem with organized religion that causes nightmarish things is not faith, it's human behaviour when in a group (linked with the need of belonging) and human relationship to power. If you look at history or even just at day to day life, humans tend to get stupid and horrible when group behavior is involved (for example bullying is rarely a bully-bullied relationship only, the watching group often plays a big role). It is human nature to want to feel like we "belong". Too often, to do this we need common characteristics to bond over, which implies there are "us" versus "the others". Then comes the "better than" aspect of the thing (and of course it goes both ways, the "others" probably see themselves as the one who are better than the "us") and then conflict ensues because to defend the legitimacy of the group (and of one's individual value linked to the fact of belonging to the group) you create confrontation. In any groups, there are power plays (leader vs member) and when groups become big, the power and therefore the stakes become bigger/higher. In the case of religions (I'm talking here about mostly the big monotheist religion because those are the ones I am most familiar with), I think they first appeared as a way to explain what couldn't be understood (creation myths, weather phenomenons etc,.) but then evolved to give structure to society (loads of the old rules made sense: don't steal, don't kill, don't have sex before marriage or we'll have a girl with no possessions and no income get stuck with a baby and therefore burden her family, be unable to create a family of her own etc., don't eat pork because they're basically giant rats who eat everything and carry diseases,....). But since they got a following, groups were created, leaders rose to the top and those leaders had the power to influence people and tell them how to live. People are never satisfied and always want more (power, money, land, reputation,...) so they'll do stuff to get more including finding reasons to take it from others. I honestly believe that if it hadn't been religion it would have been something else. The people nowadays who kill in the name of gods would be terrible people who do horrible shit even if "religion" never entered their lives.. It may have been on a lesser scale of they weren't part of an organized group but yeah.... Also: becoming fanatic/obsessed is also part of the human psyche: to some people it's only to the level of sleeping outdoors for a concert,, a movie or a new phone abs getting in fights about them, for others it is a positive force (I'm thinking of activism here) and for others it leads to extremism (political, religious, ideological,,,). So yeah, tl;dr : religion is inherently neither good nor bad, just like any "tool" it all depends on the users.. Now, in case anyone out there is interested about what I believe in: I am not an atheist because I've always felt there's something more so I believe in "something" which I call "God" out of habit but really isn't anything like the God portrayed in any of the big monotheis religion. To me the fact that you and I and everything around us (living beings and objects) is made of the same incredibly small particles, but just because they are aranged differently I can laugh and love and breathe and think but my bed is just a thing I lie on is so incredibly magical in a way.. There is something more: something we don't see or understand (yet), some "energy" that is life and that links all living beings (okay, I'm starting to sound extremely hippie/new agey, it's so tough to put out in writing) so yeah.. I do believe each religion have excellent points to them (mostly about loving others, being respectful, trying to become the best version of you and to do as much good as possible around you...) but each have points I disagree too strongly with for me to say "I am °insert religion here°" even though I do have faith. Okay, I'm going to stop this comment now.. Sorry about its length! Hope it was somewhat interesting at least? Have a nice day/night everyone! :)

I'm so glad to hear about your experience, and how great your experience at uni was. And I love to hear you so respectfully and thoughtfully talking through your thoughts.

I live in America and I'm an agnostic atheist myself. I've never met anyone in real life who shares my views. Everyone here is deeply religious and I'm all alone. Thank you Internet.

I'd describe myself as an agnostic atheist too, and I really loved the way you explained it with knowledge vs. belief. Very eloquent and respectful video Hannah!

what a great video. i love that youre talking about this. religion is hard for me to talk about. I grew up catholic and had some really shitty experiences with the church. and by that i mean my actual physical church that i grew up going to. some things happened between me and my youth group and then me and my priest, and then my whole family and the clergy kinda got into it. it really affected me... and then because of that, my own faith and spirituality have kind of been in flux for the past six years. I have trouble with my church and the way a lot of things are handled. I have trouble with the way kids are thrown into religious/ non-religious lives because thats who their parents are and are not allowed to explore. I have trouble with people who can blindly follow hateful beliefs because their "religion" I hate that for so many people its an excuse to be hateful to certain groups of people.I hate that in my church at least everything is so fake. You have to go to church so other people dont think youre a bad person. You have to do this or do that to keep up a facade of your family and their reputation. idk im just thought vomiting at this point. I'm just so frustrated. I will say, though, I love that for some people it is a source of community and love. being united in some higher purpose. I miss volunteering with my youth group friends. I miss the sense of belonging and purpose that it gave me. idk. tl;dr religion is tricky.

I'm really enjoying these videos. I don't really know any Jewish people so it's nice to get an insight into other cultural traditions. I'm with you on the organised religion though - I don't care if most people who follow organised religions are peaceful, if the majority of terror acts are under the name of organised religion then there's a problem with organised religion (and the radicalisation and extremism that it allows).

This was very brave to even touch upon, pleasantly surprised by the comments here. I was surprised at what you said, as I thought you were very different towards religion (not judging - it's just not what I thought).

So many people need to watch this, it sums up a huge topic so brilliantly. The stuff about organised religion and then the differences between atheism and agnosticism omg it's so perfect

I was raised atheist and shared some of younger-you's thoughts about religion, but I actually became a Christian in middle school. I don't go to church or participate in many organized religion activities, which I honestly think has allowed my faith to evolve and grow, though I would still like to find a church someday. To me religion isn't about proving the existence of God, it's about my own belief and feeling my life become enriched through my faith.

As a practicing Muslim, I found it really interesting to hear why you don't personally believe in a God. For me, I think people are flawed and that is where problem's arise. I don't think religion is the source of the hatred, I think people's misinterpretation, mistranslation and misunderstanding is. But that's just me and I can totally see why people would be opposed to organised religion :)

Vlognukah, The Hormone Diaries, The Banging Book Club -- You're really developing a talent for coming up with compelling series. Way to go.

just getting in here before the comments turn into arguments. this video was great! i grew up similarly and although i identify as being theistic/agnostic i do still have problems and difficulties with my faith. so glad you decided to make this!

For me as a born again Christian. It's more about having a relationship with God than being apart of an "organized religion".

My grandparents are believers, my parents not so much and my siblings do believe. Myself, I believe that religion is something created by humans to control humans. But that's just my opinion, pls don't kill meh :(

Thank you so much for sharing your religious views and starting up the conversation about this. The conversations you had are conversations that need to happen more. My dads family is athiest my moms side is christian/ catholic I'm christian but my mom was so adamant on my faith being my own. Thank you for sharing your views. Each of us are on our own spiritual journey and we need to be accepting and tolerant and loving of everyone

I really like these videos because it teaches us about a different religion and it's really cool because I'm Christian and I haven't got any information about what you celebrate at "Christmas".

Hi! Protestant Christian here. This video is incredibly interesting; thank you for making it! I'm amazed at how well you articulated your thoughts and views, especially in an unscripted video! I agree with the last part of your video- I also find it hard to accept that the people behind the Crusades, much of slavery/segregation in the US, and countless other intolerant movements believe in the same God I do. For me, it ultimately comes down to inherent human character. The Bible says that after Adam and Eve sinned, all humans were born with naturally sinful character. (I personally believe that story is true; if you don't then I respect that.) But since I believe it, I can understand how every hateful act and war began. Instead of trusting in God and studying the Bible in context, those Christians took Bible verses out of context in order to justify their horrible actions. They allowed the sinful part of their character to dictate their actions instead of recognizing that their hateful beliefs were sinful and repenting/turning back on those beliefs. I hope this doesn't sound like I'm excusing or justifying the actions of past Christians! People who have killed, tortured, oppressed, (etc) others in the name of Christ will answer for their actions. I'm just hoping that I conveyed my thoughts about the violent and hateful groups of Christians, as well as any other religion. They think they're doing what is right, but they're actually following their hateful beliefs instead of the beliefs of their religion. If any of this was unclear, I'll gladly clarify! I hope you have a fantastic rest of Hanukkah, Hannah, and a wonderful new year!

I was raised Catholic by my mother and her mother. I quietly became an atheist at age five. At age nineteen I became an agnostic. By twenty-two I was neo-pagan. And I have remained so ever since. I came to realize that my atheism was a reaction to organized religion, not religious faith. I am still powerfully opposed to all forms of organized religion. I am also deeply religious.

I love how you unapologetically talk about your beliefs-it's quite inspiring.

Is it bad that my first thought when you were talking about religious hate was that the problem isn't with religion but with people themselves?

I love your videos, Hannah. Thanks so much for sharing your experience. Your voice is a refreshing contribution to the religious conversation. I'm a Christian, but I think you're absolutely right about organised religion and its history. Of all the reasons to disbelieve in God, the state of those groups who profess such belief is certainly a valid one. I hope one day we can get our act together.

I love this a lot. I have had a really weird journey with religion over the years and I always like hearing other people's experiences.

I experienced the exact same thing once I got to uni! Lived with a Christian in first year and ended up moving in with her and other christians in second year and had the BEST time at CU events and they're my best friends now

loving vlognukah!

I loved hearing your experience with religion as my experience has been completely different. There are obviously stark contrasts between where you're from in England to where I am from, and I think that is amazing. I also love that you've made it about something other than Christmas. I live in Indiana in the US and I didn't meet anyone who didn't identify as Christian until I was probably 16. I didn't even meet anyone Jewish until I went to university. I grew up as a nondenominational protestant which is confusing in and of itself, but we weren't ones that went to church every weekend... or every month for that matter. We believed in reading the Bible first, and practicing second. As I got older, I became way more liberal as my other Christian friends became more conservative in political views as well as how we viewed passages within the Bible. We argued a lot about social justice issues and I had a really hard time subscribing to the belief that God hated ____ group of people for whatever reason. As I developed friendships within the LGBT community, I could never believe that something so beautiful as loving someone could be a sin. Over time I became more and more confused about God and my religion as a whole, and now I would probably identify as agnostic? maybe? Who knows anymore?

I was raised a Catholic. Totally believed everything I was taught. Then when I became a teenager, I started questioning things and realized that there was no actual way I could communicate with God. How could my parents believe in someone that all of our senses fail to sense?? I still don't know but I acknowledge the fact that my parents' steadfast faith is something beautiful and rare. I consider myself to be an agnostic but my parents don't know of my current status. Now and again though, I catch myself silently praying to God when in stressful situations (before exams ;etc).

I can really relate to your story Hannah. I grew up in an atheist family that really influenced my beliefs and I was convinced for a very long time that religious people were somehow "brainwashed". Being Italian, I've always been sorrounded by Catholicism and religious people, and when I made the hard choice of going to a Catholic university I had the chance to have an interesting dialogue with catholic people that really changed my perspective. However, I also saw the filthy world of the Catholic Church and everyday I see students belonging to religious groups being helped a lot more by professors and getting a lot more opportunities than we do. There's always a good and a bad side to things,and we have the power to understand and maybe try to change them :)

there are good and bad people in EVERY group, not just religions. (even as a very minor version) think about the youtube community. there have been horrible people in the community who have taken advantage of their fame, manipulated people and even sexually assaulted people. but most youtubers are not like that. most youtubers are just ordinary people who love creating things. it would be unfair to say that the whole platform is evil just because people on it use their popularity to justify their evil. religion is just the same. people can use the name of god for love or hatred. all you can do is not generalise either way and instead keep faith and morals separate. i personally am not religious but i have a lot of friends who are christians. i used to find it difficult to understand this like you but since discussing it a lot with my friends, i've learnt a lot and though i can never fully understand belief in god, i can understand the separation between the good religious people and the bad religious people (oversimplifying but still).

Yes. To all of the above. Happily an agnostic atheist living life how I see fit, not how a books tells me.

I loved this video. But I guess what you say about there being a group of people that's hateful and a group that's accepting both being part of the same religion counts for atheists too? I mean there's hateful and accepting ones and some seem like they'd fight about that too? idk

i grew up in a really catholic household and went to catholic school my whole life so i had a pretty solid identity as a catholic until around when i started high school. i prayed regularly, i followed and believed in catholic doctrine stringently, the whole nine yards. but as i got older i really started to question my faith and at a point i even considered myself an agnostic atheist as well. but in the past few years i've found that nothing gave me comfort and solace as much as my faith and relationship with God. although my faith is definitely shakier than it used to be and i would now be considered a "cafeteria catholic", i have returned to the church with a new outlook and zest. for me, God and the organized catholic church is a comfort despite the history that you mentioned that can make it hard sometimes. i think religion is a beautiful thing, i mean just think about all the magnificent art and literature and architecture that God has inspired! i want to raise my children in the church and send them to catholic school like i was, but i definitely want to give them more of an outlet to question their faith and ask the kind of questions i was too afraid to ask my parents.

I'm an orthodox religous Jew. I believe in God, partially because that is what I was always taught as a child by my parents but also partially because I have had various experiences within my life, especially in the last few years, that I can't argue that God has played a part in, if that makes sense? Also, really enjoying vlognukah!!

You summed up my feelings on religion in the last section of this video and I've never really heard anyone talk about religion like that openly, it was refreshing to hear it said in a respectful way

i wish i grew up in the same environment as you, my dad doesnt really believe in a god and nor does the rest of his side of the family, however my mum's side has always been very religious (Christian). when I was younger I felt like all though my childhood I was pressured into doing all the christian 'ceremonies' like first holy communion and confirmation (I agreed to do my confirmation bc I didn't want to disappoint people I think and I hadn't really given much thought into whether I actually believed in god as I had gone to a Christian school and it had been drilled into me all my life). however now I am in highschool (I'm 14) I know that I am an agnostic athiest but my mum still forces me to go to church with her and get communion when there, when I ask her why I still have to do this she says "do it for me", she doesn't accept that I don't hold her beliefs and it is so frustrating as this isn't about her anymore, this is about me and how I want to live my life and she can't dictate that as I am allowed to have my own beliefs

Hannah Greetings from the states! As a christian priest from the Anglican tradition, I really respect your honesty and truthfulness. It is my belief that you will continue to meet exciting people that will change your entire worldview. You will still be the same person on the inside. Your core belief about the universe will be challenged in a positive way. thank you.

As far as afterlife goes I find a lot of comfort in death being the end. The idea used to scare me but I made peace with it. I think it gives more meaning to life, and encourages you to appreciate it. It also fits with my ideology that there is nothing only bad or only good. Life isn't horrible, life isn't amazing, it just is. I wouldn't want to live forever because there is too much suffering in life, but I live life for now because great things also exist. If there was experiences after life I wouldn't want to deal with the suffering that comes with happiness, and I don't believe one can exist without the other. So I find an end comforting and important.

aww Hannah. I don't watch a ton of youtube videos but I've stumbled across a few of yours and I wish we could be real life friends and have long conversations over coffee and chocolate and such, and I could tell you everything I think and listen to everything you think. Thank you for your honesty here, it was so good and interesting to listen to.

I've got a sort of similar sort of different view/experience to you. I was raised to believe in God in a (not very religious) Muslim family so we celebrated Eid etc but didn't go to mosque or pray all the time etc it was mainly the traditions we stuck to. I still do believe in God but I find it difficult to feel that presence in my life a lot of the time which makes me feel insecure about my faith. With organised religion? Like you, I can't bring myself to ignore the horrors it's caused. I cannot understand how the main messages can be ones of love and kindness and charity yet such hatred and violence has come from it. I understand not all people are like that but I personally completely detach myself from religion because of people's actions. Monotheistic religions also stemmed from sexism and a want to create a patriarchy, which, as a feminist, disgusts me. Also, I'm queer and it is extremely difficult for me to identify and accept religion when largely, it has not accepted me. Practically every person who has rejected the LGBT community has done so in the name of religion. Therefore, I find it very difficult to fit my identity as a woman, a feminist and an LGBT individual into religion. Loved your video and hearing your thoughts!!

Thanks for making this video. I myself have grown up not really believing in God but couldn't really find an adequate way to put how i think into words. This video genuinely made my day.

Yeah, the problem comes from when religions are forcefully imposed on society. People often do not recognize the difference between Islam and Islamism and by not identifying t the concentric circles of different groups inside even one culture, it's easy to make assumptions about Muslims and Islam as a whole being fundamentally bad. It's more complex than that. I recently read Islam and the Future of Tolerance: A Dialogue, and it fundamentally showed me how complex and wonderful Islam is and how it's image is abused by terrorist groups from a grassroots level. Holy war is not a new idea and small groups in history on both sides have attempted to impose religions as if anything different is a fundamental threat to all life. I am for secularism and I believe in a higher power and energy, which seems mostly spiritual. I am for the teachings in Taoism.

I appreciate this video so much - I love hearing about people from different backgrounds discussing their beliefs with genuine interest rather than in an argument. As a Christian myself I share the same frustrations with organized religion as you do. I guess that's why there are SO MANY different denominations of the Christian church (because people would look at other Christians and think "we don't like that, let's split off" - or something to that effect). It can be frustrating to see some Christians be so kind and others not demonstrate the same gentleness. For one thing, no one can really know another person's heart and understand what saying "I'm a Christian" specifically means to them. For another thing, C.S. Lewis said something along the lines of: having a relationship with God improves someones faults and temperaments, so if someone is naturally gracious and kind without God, then they will be all the more so with God. And if there is a Christian who is unkind, they are still more kind than they were without God. OK, I hope I haven't rambled or misinformed or anything.

"Secular Jew" or secular version of any other religion is a really interesting concept. I didn't know how to put a name on that, so thanks!

Late to the party here, but I just have to say that while there are many things that I like about you and your videos, I think it's your introspective nature that I admire the most. This video really showcases that so well. It's refreshing to find someone with a similar wavelength. I'm really glad I found your channel and I can't wait to continue watching you learn and grow. I have learned a few things from you and I hope to learn more. Take care.

Thanks for the video, Hannah. As a Christian who is almost exclusively surrounded by non-religious people, I'm often afraid to talk about my religion for fear that my non-religious friends won't respect me anymore. I'm glad to see that that's not always the case. I also have to check myself and not assume that every non-religious person is going to be aggressive and judgmental towards me, so I'm trying to be better too. I don't have all of the answers as I'm still learning and growing, but I'm glad to see I'm not alone in that. I'd love to hear more about how you relate to the cultural side of Judaism, as that's not something I've ever understood. I don't have articulate questions, just general curiosity. Thanks!

You're spot on with your definitions, Hannah. No need to run and hide. The words "atheist" and "agnostic" answer different questions, just as you stated.

I identify as an agnostic absurdist. For ME this means that I think there is something at least partially responsible for the creation of the universe, weither that's God, or a pantheon, or anything else I couldn't tell you. But I also see the likelihood that it is just science and evolution. I couldn't tell you which, and that's where the absurdism comes in. Absurdism (from my understanding) is the belief that life has no inherent meaning, but humans must try to put meaning to their life to be happy. I see religion as one of the many ways to do that, specifically organized religion. I think that for some people believing in a god(s) is a way to meaning to their life. I don't personally find it necessary in my own quest for self generated happiness, but I appreciate the affect it can have on others. Like I said before, I think it is very plausible that some sort of divine force is responsible for human life, as there are a lot of questions science leaves unanswered, but I also think it is completely realistic that it is all down to evolution we just don't have all the pieces yet. I guess the difference is, for me that doesn't matter. I believe that, God or not, our short human life has no inherent meaning. But that it is human nature to try and find meaning in our lives and find happiness through this, and organized religion is one way to do that. This comment is really long; sorry. I'm really bad at explaining things so it probably doesn't make sense either but oh well, you at least get the gist.

I appreciate that when you were talking about no longer judging people who believe in God but you still have to check yourself. people can change but it is gradually.

i also identify as jewish-atheist-agnostic ! im glad you made this video :)

This was so lovely. You showed true humility in this, something often missing in discussions about religion.

6:04 God showed himself by magically turning your light on

i think you put it into words so well! its like i have such a hard time w/ religion bc of all the hate and violence that seems to come out of it in the name of something thats not even real

The difference between nice and nasty people when it comes to religion is the cherry picking of the respective texts, and what they are told by others about which part of the texts is more important than others - and the context of who wrote what is often lost. As a Christian, I see the Bible as a bit like the pirates' code in as far as the text are more like guidelines than rules. Jesus taught love - as far as I can see that was all he said to do every time someone asked him questions about how to deal with other people.

Great video, Hannah! It's really interesting to hear your take on this. I grew up totally outside of religion - both of my parents' families are Catholic, but neither of my parents are, and I wasn't sent to Sunday school or anything. Through my teen years it sounds like we had pretty similar experiences - I was a big fan of Richard Dawkins and thought that organised religion was overall a bad thing and that believing in God was stupid. Now I'm 22, and for the past 18 months I've been converting to Liberal Judaism. I had a really strange experience in the spring of 2015 of really not being able to stop thinking about Judaism (which I've grown up around via friends, but obviously not in), and started going to a reform temple over the summer. When I got back to Edinburgh, where I go to uni, I started going to the Liberal Jewish congregation and began the official conversion process with them. The ideal of God (especially with regard to the problem of evil) and the history of organised religion were really serious problems I had to work through before I could feel good about and commit to my path. With regards to the issue of war and atrocities, I think my American-ness helped, because most of America's wars have been fought over the secular ideals of freedom and all that. Seeing that terrible wars are fought for a multitude of reasons, not just religious ones, mitigated that objection for me. I will admit that a lot of what got me over that was my personal faith, so it's not wholly that. I did a lot of theological reading in the early months of my conversion, which I think is only worth it if you're seriously interested and already invested, but the way that I currently understand God and prayer is as a focus for my gratitude, and the natural world. So I see prayer as a call to gratitude, and a spur to better action in the world. Looking back, I do really see this change as something that happened to me, not something that I made happen, and while I think there can be benefits to a religious commitment for people who haven't experienced that feeling of faith or compulsion, I don't think there's any value in forcing it or trying really hard to get there. My pre-Jewish self would not have found any real value in the things current-me does with a particularly Jewish feeling. Sorry this got so long, I've just got lots of opinions :P

I loved this video! I love open, respectful, graceful discussions about religion. I'm a Christian, but I'm also bisexual. So...that's been kind of hard for me lol. I'm in a very conservative town in Texas where we only have one church that accepts gay people. I'm really thankful for the internet because that's where I've been able to find community with other gay Christians. In fact, I'm about to go to my first Gay Christian Network conference in 10 days! I'm very excited. I'm currently in a state of questioning what I believe and trying to find where I fit out of all the Christian groups out there. One thing that I don't believe will change, though is my personal relationship with God. Ever since I was little, I have felt God's presence. As I live my life, I will be in constant pursuit of understanding this being that is incomprehensible to my human brain. I love God, and he loves me more than I can imagine.

These reasons are why I chose to study Philosophy at A-Level to educate myself on these topics further xx

Really appreciated this

I completely understand how you feel about religion. I have grown up in a very religious household and went to church until the age of 13. I identify as an agnostic and can't completely see the meaning behind wars and conflicts that have been started in the name of religion.

How can you be a Jewish and not believe in God? These are opposites. An atheist who is a Jewish. I loved this video

+Hannah Witton I'm Jewish in culture and an agnostic atheist in knowledge and belief as well. My beliefs and experience is similar to yours in a lot of ways. My Jewish heritage is passed through my dad so I'm half Jewish. My mom is Christian and believes in god but doesn't actively go to church. Up until I was about 9 I regularly went to church and was raised to believe in god. But my mom, growing up in a very "Christian bubble" similar to your "atheist bubble" didn't want that for me. We began essentially not having the time to go to church. We observe Hanukkah, Christmas, and Easter traditionally but not religiously. I have never been to a synagogue, and I would like to learn Hebrew at some point but I don't have time right now. The way you described your agnostic atheist beliefs and your connection to your Jewish heritage is basically identical to mine. I want to thank you for making this video. I find it helpful and I'm sure you've gotten crap for it because it's controversial. ❤️

I'm an agnostic theist. I identify as christian, but I don't go to church (mostly because I haven't found one I'm 100% comfortable at, and I couldn't always be bothered to go at my college where I was comfortable) I respect everyone's beliefs because I honestly don't know for sure. I just try to live my life by the simple principle of kindness.

so nice to see an open and honest video about religion- as an aethiest i always want to understand why people hold certain views and understand more about religion yet its so often tiptoed around

I'm not religious, but I think the bit about having hateful and peaceful groups is a bit like feminism. You'll have some who say they hate men and feminists that believe in equal rights for all. I'll still call myself a feminist, even though there are feminists I disagree with.

Thoughtful and sensitive as always, Hannah, and I'm glad to hear you talking about these difficult, important things in a way that is up to your standards. I would love to talk about this further with you or anyone else. Two quick thoughts: 1) As to "organized religion": from what I've seen*, it's really really really important to have authoritative structures to aid in spiritual training. Without structure, each person has to basically re-invent a whole system from scratch, whereas working with qualified teachers and mentors speeds that process tremendously. This authority requires trust, and that trust needs to be earned and continually re-earned, and it helps to have a network of teachers who know each other and can vouch for each other. When teachers legitimize each other, it streamlines students' evaluation of their merits and legitimacy, although of course everyone always needs to be careful. Networks of spiritual teachers also allow students to learn different things from different people, and so open the system up to make room for a wider array of methods. At the same time, having those teachers be networked together means a student knows which practices go together--fundamentally, the utility of a religious denomination is that each contains a bundle of complementary methods. That's not to say that other method-bundles (denominations) aren't correct, but rather that mostly sticking to one bundle in your own practice allows you to go deep, as opposed to flitting around the surface of a lot of systems without ever really learning something. Organization is thus absolutely necessary for any spiritual system, but it can also go wrong in lots of ways (using power to hide abuse; becoming cults; using power for political gain; spreading other ideologies not intrinsic to the method-bundle) 2) Re: nice vs. not-nice people in a religion: All the stuff I just talked about is predicated on a particular assumption of the role of a religion, which is to say that it's a system for spiritual training. This is, I believe, the most important role a religion can have, and it's the role that I try to get my religion to play in my life. Not everyone thinks this way, however, and there are lots of other roles religion can play. So the relevant similarities often aren't at the level of religion (Christianity, Islam, Tengriism, Tenrikyo...) but rather at the type of practitioner (social worker, mystic, scholar, person-trying-to-get-by-in-daily-family-and-work-life...). Each of those practitioner types, however, are going to use different methods according to their religion's method-bundle. 3) While I too had an ardent atheist phase, I've come to think that the question of "the existence of God" just... isn't an interesting question most of the time, you know? Beliefs are methods. If your method-bundle involves believing in Divinity X, then sure, "does Divinity X exist" might be an interesting question. But that question is only relevant within, or when evaluating, a particular method-bundle's definition. And when Christians, Muslims, and Hindus, in particular, ask that question... they're really asking very different questions, because they're using totally different definitions. I'm currently reading _God is One_, by Stephen Prothero, and while I'm not far enough along to say whether or not I recommend it, it does bring up an important point: different religions have different purposes. Speaking very generally, Christianity believes that sin is a problem, and its methods are about that problem. In contrast, Buddhism (generally speaking!) believes suffering is a problem, and applies methods to solve that problem. Buddhism doesn't really believe in sin, and Christianity doesn't really believe suffering is a problem... so the two systems are doing different things. As for your own situation, Hannah, have you ever been to an unprogrammed Quaker Meeting? I highly recommend it, just as an experience, but also as a very profound program of spiritual training that isn't necessarily predicated on typical Western notions of God. There are also very profound programs of spiritual training in Judaism that likewise don't always require typical belief in God--Spinoza is a famous philosopher who wrote in that vein, but there are lots of living, breathing people who can teach you actual practices to put these kinds of ideas into action in your life. *Full disclosure: raised not-religious-with-vague-Christian-background in US, Roman Catholic education, significant experience with Quakers (Friends General Conference) and Judaism (largely Reconstructionist). Formally adopted Buddhism at 19, now 25 and a member of a Western-transmitted lineage of the Kagyu school of Tibetan Buddhism. (Anyone should feel free to email me--cageissler42 [at] gmail--if you'd like to talk about these things with another interested regular person in a less-public way)

Im kind of the same an atheist and agnostic

I was raised in a very Christian household, and when I went to college I completely rejected all organized religion. I had that exact same feeling that I was better and smarter than people who believed. At the same time, I've always been really fascinated with learning about different religious customs, beliefs, etc. Just recently I've been discovering Buddhism, and it really resonates with me. I think, above all, it's important to spread knowledge about all kinds of different belief systems.

Awesome, a person who knows difference between atheist and agnostic :)

this is the first video i've watched of yours and i just subscribed! i related a lot to this as my religious beliefs did change slightly when i moved to uni in september. surrounding yourself with people from all walks of life really opens up your eyes and has 1000% allowed me to be more open and understanding of different religions and cultures! theres nothing i enjoy more than chatting to someone who has different religious beliefs to me and learning about their background and family traditions. i find it so so interesting and loved listening to you chat about it! have a lovely day x

Thank you so much for making this video I think it's so cool to hear about others experiences! I am a Christian and just as a little background I believe that the whole Christian bible is Gods word, and that God cannot lie. There is this verse that popped in my head as I was listening to your experience (2 Peter 2:1). 2 peter was actually written by a man named Peter, and in 2 peter 2:1 Peter states that false teachers of Christ were prevalent at that time and would always be among us as Christians. Jesus also warns against false teachers in Matthew 24:11 and Mark 13:22-23. False teachers might claim to possess secret knowledge about God that gives them authority, and could include people spreading ideas that aren't really of the character of God, such as hate. It is also possible that people being violent in the name of God could be an attempt to cover up their violent actions. Which God warns us not to do in 1 peter 2:16: "Live as free people, but do not use your freedom as a cover-up for evil" Overall though, from a Christians perspective it is not the will of God for these people to claim to know him and do evil. However, it is Gods will that we all have freewill to choose him or to not choose him. This freewill, I believe, he gave to us out of love. If he made us robots to him, if he made us love him back, we wouldn't have our individuality. And I also believe that God is *so* much more intelligent than me, so there is reasons he gave us freewill and allows evil in the world that I can't understand. The bible does express though that God ***yearns*** that all people come to know him.

Hej Hannah, thank you for sharing your relationship with religion. I've been struggling with it myself, too. I was raised church-going christian, but stopped going when I started my studies at university. Today I call myself spiritual but not religious, but I do go to church sometimes and enjoy being there. I don't practice any religion, i.e. praying and stuff. I get your struggle with organized religion and war 'in the name of'. But I thought maybe I could offer my perspective: I don't think there's anything inherently wrong with religion because of all the wars and violence. Wars and violence will happen, whether it is because of resources like oil or food, because of natural disasters like flooding or because of fundamental differences about how to organize society (capitalism, socialism, etc.) Religion, especially organized religion, is just a good cover to sell such an awful thing as war to your public, and a great banner to rally your people under. (Imagine your government saying 'we could greatly benefit if we invaded this country and stole all their stuff' - most people would think that not very moral. But if you are able to create a deep-seeded fear of the other people because of the radically different way they worship their god, and 'they surely can't be good people and anyone who kills one of them will be rewarded in heaven', then you can sell a war much easier!) My point is that I'm not very convinced there would have been less war and violence in the last 3000 years if there was no organized religion. There are always many many reasons for violence and taking away one of the contributing factors might not have stopped it, people might just have found another factor to contribute. And on top of that, there is no way of knowing how many wars and how much violence has been avoided because of religion. Wars don't happen as easily between nations who's citizens have much interaction and things in common. And maybe there were a lot of possibilities for war between nations, but they got averted because of the close ties between those peoples, especially thought their shared, deep-seeded believes. But in determining if religion is a force for good or evil, the amount of violence avoided has to be taken into account, too, does it not? Thanks again, best regards from the Netherlands, Micha

I was brought up in Finland which is mostly a Lutheran country. As a kid having studied religion in school I felt like religion was really cool and helpful to people. But when I started growing up I was faced with the fact that a lot of bad things are caused by religion. And then realising that I'm part of the LGBT+ community I felt hated an less than. And politics are so strongly influenced by religion I find that fucked up. I think religion is a beautiful this as long as it's personal, but when it affects the lives of others I don't think that's right. So when I turn 18 I'm not going to be part of the church and I don't want to have anything to do with that. At least before I've figured out what I actually think (and when people don't want to kill me because I'm trans lol).

I’m a pentacostal Christian and while I’m not going to give any insight here, I do want to say how much I love that you can articulate your thoughts and feelings in such a kind and loving way.

we have the same problem with religion I've had a few experiences where people use religion to be hateful and it makes me uncomfortable but I know not all religious people are like that so I'm conflicted

As a religious, Orthodox Jew, I'm really appreciating watching these videos and hearing about your outlook. I'm also really enjoying reading the comments - yay for religious discussion without descending into arguments full of hate!

If it makes you feel any better, we religious people feel the same way about people who claim that they practice the same religion but act so hatefully and even violently toward others, all the while using the religion in question as an excuse. Like as a Christian, I am just heartbroken and confused when I see people use Christianity as an excuse to be terrible to others, because that is not the teaching that I see when I study the gospels. So yeah, it's just really upsetting, and I think a lot of it just comes down to people wanting to be hateful and twisting their religion into an excuse to act on their hate.

I always really appreciate hearing your thoughts on complex subjects like this, you are very honest and insightful! :)) I have the same problems with accepting the downsides of religion as a whole, but then I also consider all the good that has come from religion too. I think as with everything, it probably comes down to human nature, and how an individual chooses to interpret religion. I try and be open-minded and think that anything could be misinterpreted, but then I am unsure whether misinterpretation of anything else would cause as much destruction.

I too was raised Jewish, however I have grown up agnostic. I am currently 17, so I know I have a lot to learn. I find it very very hard to believe in a God. There has never been a time in my life where God has shown himself to be real. There were times, when I was younger, where I was in extremely shitty situation. Every night, I would pray to any and every God to save me, help me, but I had to get myself out of the mess. I also find it hard to believe in a God when so much terrible shit happens in the world. If there is a God that created murder and rape and racism and sexism and terrorists and shootings, then I don't want to put any faith in him anyways. I understand why people do believe. I think that God was created to give people hope and an explanation to how and why things happen. I am glad that some people have a religion to turn to. However, we have to admit that religion has caused millions of deaths. The Holocaust was because of religion. ISIS was created over religious beliefs. People don't understand how I am comfortable not knowing, but I like where I am on the spectrum of faith.

Hannah, I love you! I was not brought up in any faith, but I spend a lot of time with the Seventh Day Adventists as a child with my Nan. Other than that, your current thoughts on religion are identical to mine! Thank you for making an awesome video, yet again 😄

The reason some men do acts of evil in the name of God is b/c they are using God for their own personal gain; read the words of Jesus in the Bible and you'll see Jesus never led any of those acts. Evil men may call themselves Christians, but they are not; they use Christianity as a platform to accomplish their own wants and desires. Unfortunately, God, Jesus, Christians and Christianity as a whole catches a bad rap for the acts of these people. GALATIANS 5:22&23 - God's spirit makes us loving, happy, peaceful, patient, kind, good, faithful, gentle, and self-controlled. So, if you see people claiming to be Christians, but yet committing acts of evil, then you know they are not of the Holy Spirit. The bible says we can tell a tree by the fruit that it bears.

Love this! These past few years, I've been on a bit of a religious rollercoaster but my recent conclusion has been that every religion is based on faith, no one can prove that there is a creator, therefore can not logically expect others to conform to their beliefs. However, I've been able to see the beauty in diversity through the sexes, races, and religious divisions and I actually find it fascinating to learn about other peoples views on a friendly basis

Yeah, the history of religion can get...odd. There's also the idea that "religion caused this". Most of it is actually the inherent tribalism. You thought religious people were dumb. Those religious folk thought the same about the people of different religious beliefs. Do not generalize about religion. It's *really* dangerous to your ability to understand what's going on. Because once you get a bunch of people together, tribal forces come into play, and sometimes they overtake religion, and religion gets used to justify things. (I'll also point out that most people are really good at justifying their own bullshit, which does not require religion.)

I feel very similarly to you. I went to Catholic school for 12 years and it honestly burnt me out. I feel like I have no patience for organized religion but at the same time it was such a huge part of my life for so long I feel like I can't just let it go.

As a Muslim, I can see where you're coming from in regards to the whole violence in the name of God thing. But I think it's great that you can still respect people of all beliefs regardless :)

this was such an interesting discussion: I totally understand your view on agnostic/atheism in terms of the effect it has on you as a person. I feel similar when discussing my personal faith. I would identify as Christian due to my own cultural experience - I chose to go to Sunday school and church groups when my parents did not. However, up until six form, I attended a CofE school which ultimately resulted in a bubble of culture. Many people shared similar views and when religion was discussed, it was a particular section of Christianity. I feel as though a lot of my views have come from depressive episodes. I love the idea of religion in terms of a community learning together but frequently struggle to accept and believe everything, especially when my mood has dipped. I feel as though so much of our British culture is stooped in Christianity that it is very hard to separate what is and isn't faith, given that it is a very personal thing.

Omg I relate with you so much I thought religious people were stupid and uneducated growing up. I was raised Catholic but never in organized religion. The funny thing was that all of a sudden I discovered Islam in high school and now am a Muslim. I don't think I was truly athiest because I wouldn't be Muslim now. I really think we all should investigate different religions instead of being set in our ways and being ignorant. Nobody knows if religion is true or fake but I think that exploring is a beautiful thing and we should be open minded.

This was such a respectful and mature video and as a Christian I really enjoyed watching this.

"Free food! Thank You, Jesus!" "There's loads of cute babies at church" - Hannah 2016

Wow Hannah i don't mean to poop on other youtubers but you're one of the few that easily traverse the space between lighthearted videos and deeper ones and make it sound so honest yet not too serious/depressing? keep doing what you're doing Hannah, no pressure but you keep getting better with every video

it depends on what you define as god. i don't believe in a higher power, i don't believe in a supreme being, or that the bible is anything but fiction. but if you could call evolution god, how nature works, what makes everything grow, the energy that takes, the energy and life that is in everything we touch, if you could call that god, then i believe in god. not an omniscient god, just an energy of growth and goodness. when it comes to people who are religious, obviously i realize there are non-judgmental religious people out there, but for me it's a guilty until proven innocent deal. and that's just a matter of self-preservation, because i've been burned too many times before by people who claimed to be a follower of jesus but in actuality just used their religion to justify their meanness.

I'm really glad I found your channel. As an agnostic theist theology student I really appreciate your approach to religion. It's a complex thing and it needs to be talked about as such. Unfortunately people are just really uneducated about it and have such strong biases (both ways) that it's almost impossible to talk about without people getting offended. Also, great to see some judaism on youtube. I'm really into Hebrew and (academically) studying the Hebrew Bible. Seeing first hand how hard it is to translate and all the inconsistencies and the editing behind the texts, it really changes your view on religion. Not necessarily towards atheism, but towards a more nuanced understanding on the issue.

So with those definitions, could i identify as an agnostic Christian if i wanted to? kinda sounds off/dumb but idk

Great video, Hannah! Thank you! It's so kind, honest and interesting. How amazing it is even when you don't believe in God you enjoy tradition and culture around the religion! I'm from Poland and believe in Christ and... love your kind and lovely video!

i'm also rather apatheistic in that i don't care if there is a god or not.

Hi, my great grandmother recently passed away (she was 102) so I glad someone's great grandmother is still around :) College was the first time I had some very open and loving conversations on religion as well. it is difficult to broach because it is such a personal topic but thank you for the video

Love your thoughts on this matter! Completely agree with you on the whole religion on a personal basis vs religion as a whole and the issues it has caused and continues to cause ❤